By John Turnbull - Bunkered
The world-famous Auchterlonies of St Andrews golf shop was
raided by a ‘professional gang’ in the early hours of Thursday morning.
As reported by The Courier,
thousands of pounds worth of equipment was pinched from the store on
Golf Place after thieves reportedly smashed their way in shortly before
1am.
It’s understood that four individuals were involved and a suspect
said they were in the shop for around five minutes before fleeing the
scene in a black Range Rover.
Putters, drivers, and fairway woods from the likes of Scotty Cameron, Ping, TaylorMade, Odyssey, and Callaway were stolen.
An Auchterlonies spokesman confirmed the business is assisting Police
Scotland with their inquiries, while police confirmed they are probing
the break-in.
“On Thursday, January 15, we received a report of a break-in at a
premises on Golf Place in St Andrews that happened around 0.45am that
day,” a police spokeswoman told the paper.
“Inquiries are ongoing.”
The much-loved store, less than 100 yards from the first tee of the
iconic Old Course in the Home of Golf, was established in 1895 by former
Open champion Willie Auchterlonie.
It’s one of the longest standing and largest high street golf retailers in the UK, stocking all of the game’s biggest brands.
Few golfers make the venture to St Andrews without stepping foot in
the store, which spans 10,000-square feet. A few famous faces have also
stopped by in recent years, including Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc,
who spent around half an hour in the shop during a visit in 2024.
Singers Harry Styles and Lewis Capaldi have had a look inside, too.
Auchterlonies, meanwhile, has an online shop, which launched in 2020 to mark its 125th anniversary.
